Crab apple
The Crab apple is familiar as a small tree that produces yellow-green, rounded fruit that is used for making jellies and wines. It can be found in woods and hedges, as well as in cultivated…
Search
Chwilio
Forest bug
The shoulders of the Forest bug are distinctive - they are square-cut, almost rounded, unlike the other 'spiked' shield bugs. This bug can be found in woodlands, feeding on the sap of…
Purple-loosestrife
A tall plant, purple-loosestrife can form dense stands of bright purple flower spikes in wet habitats like reedbeds, fens and marshes.
My family history
Whilst researching his family history, Vic found that many of his ancestors were connected to wild places as gamekeepers, shepherds, millers, gardeners or agricultural labourers. His lifelong love…
Alder
Common alder can be found along riversides, and in fens and wet woodlands. Its exposed roots provide shelter for fish, and its rounded leaves are food for aquatic insects.
Black horehound
The pungent, rotten smell of Black Horehound makes this medium-sized plant of waste ground and roadside verges stand out from the crowd.
Perennial rye-grass
Perennial rye-grass is a tufted, vigorous grass of roadside verges, rough pastures and waste ground. It is commonly used in agriculture and for reseeding grasslands.
My back-to-school
As a child growing up in Ghana, Patience never took an interest in what was going on in the garden. Now, she’s growing her own flowers and vegetables every week, both at the Centre for Wildlife…
Woodlark
The secretive woodlark can be hard to spot. It nests on the ground on our southern heathlands and uses scattered trees and woodland edges for lookout posts.
Hard rush
The stiff, spiky and upright leaves and brown flowers of hard rush are a familiar sight of wetlands, riversides, dune slacks and marshes across England and Wales.
My recovery
After undergoing brain surgery, Simone suffered from severe headaches and was worried that she would find volunteering with Durham Wildlife Trust too strenuous; in fact, she has found that the…
Himalayan balsam
As its name suggests, Himalayan balsam is from the Himalayas and was introduced here in 1839. It now an invasive weed of riverbanks and ditches, where it prevents native species from growing.